Title of Project: The Peace Omega Project (POP): Contemplating Contemporary Contempt
Inspiration Behind the Project:
I have a keen interest in “House Music” and in particular its American roots, its world-wide acclaim, one hundred sub-genres, and its current momentum as a phenomenal and distinctive sound descending from African musical aesthetics, and being born in the American “underground” music scene. House music set the template for Electronic Dance Music (EDM) which gained unforeseen popularity all-over Europe. We are at a time in history that cultural and ethnic musics from around the globe can be, and most have been, infused with the driving enchanting poly-rhythms of House music.
Listeners of this percussion driven electronic musical genre have likened it to a spiritual experience.
Tribal and afro-beat rhythms have appealed to the masses enabling them to re-connect to each other as human beings with unifying roots in Africa, regardless of race, hybrid identity, or territorial boundaries given the wider access to cultural forms via the world-wide web and new production and distribution technologies. I’d like to show how the musical landscape has changed to suit an international audience in a globalized world, and look into how new types of cultural exchanges, including the borrowing of styles, may shape our musical future.
All kinds of cultural music have been appropriated and have undergone some level of acculturation throughout history, but in the information age, informed decisions should be made on how to utilize cultural artifacts in a way that celebrates and preserves our histories and cultural diversity, rather than conform to one fabricated and indistinguishable global identity.